Conventional switch devices having a momentary type switch used as a dimmer switch for switching a headlamp or headlight between a high beam and a low beam condition use a separate contact opposed type switch. To prevent both the high beam and low beam from being turned off at the same time, the separate contact opposed type switch is activated when the momentary type switch is switched between the high beam and low beam conditions. This is the conventional attempt to avoid phenomenon commonly referred to as dark zone. The contact opposed type switch is designed to have a movable contact in the form of a leaf spring that is pushed by a push rod into contact with a fixed contact member to turn on the switch prior to the switching of the momentary type switch.
After the contact opposed type switch is turned on, the push rod is further moved in the same direction by the distance or stroke required for switching the momentary type switch. That is, after the contact opposed type switch is turned on, the push rod is designed to be further moved by a predetermined amount or stroke to flex the movable contact. The conventional leaf springs used for movable contacts have been made long in length to avoid excessive stress caused by flexing. However, use of a long leaf spring renders it difficult to manufacture a smaller or compact version of the contact opposed type switch.
In an effort to achieve a compact contact opposed type switch, it has been proposed to replace such a leaf spring with others mechanisms. A further proposal has been a leaf spring serving as a movable contact of a contact opposed type switch that is pulled by a rod away from a mating fixed contact to maintain the OFF state. In this proposed structure, when the momentary type switch is operated, the contact opposed type switch is turned on as a result of the restoring force of the leaf spring. Problems with the conventional contact opposed type switches are that for assembly purposes they must be provided as a unit and are not compact in size. As a result, the conventional contact opposed type switches can not be used with all types of light control switches.